Today's Thought ... 29 Jun 09.

It's 10:30am & I had a great night's sleep! I've got 13.5 hours left to make some great things happen!

Imagine what YOU could accomplish if you actually took stock of every spent hour of the day the same way you might take stock of every spent dollar out of your paycheck.

What could YOU accomplish if you made every hour count as much as you strive to make every dollar count?

A Great "Find A Way!" Testimonial!

I finished your book today. WOW…

Not only am I impressed with your book, I feel a whole new sense of “empowerment.” Your book has helped me to open my eyes and to think about my life and how I can improve upon it. It has forced me to reach waaaaaay into the back of my mind and “dust off” the knowledge and tools that were already in place but were not being utilized to my advantage.

Your book is extremely motivational, encouraging, full of great stories and offers wonderful sources to broaden ones knowledge. My copy is now full of “Post-It” markers as well as marked up with “neon yellow” highlights in areas that most inspired me.

I truly encourage everyone out there who is reading this post to purchase and read this book.

It’s a “must read” and you owe it to yourself. Find A Way To Make A Way.... Read More

Great job Reed … keep sharing your wonderful gift!!!

D. Jackson
St. Paul, MN.

Paying My Respects. R.I.P. M.J.J.

Thursday - Jun 25, 2009:

I was home for lunch when I learned that Michael Jackson had been taken to the hospital because he had stopped breathing. While there was a part of me that hoped for the best, there was another part of me that knew this was the end of an era. By the very nature of what I do for a living, I know the exact significance of what it means when a person stops breathing - and rarely is it ever good. Because I tend to take late lunches, I went back to work and was back home about an hour later. Michael was still in the hospital. About an hour and a half later; just as I was walking out the door to work a security detail at a local high school graduation ceremony, my wife comes to the door and yells, "Michael Jackson's dead!" I replied, "Naah, he's in the hospital;" to which she replied, "Fox News just reported that he's dead!"

Well ... that sealed the deal for me. Right then and there - somewhere around 5:30pm (EST), I knew Michael was gone because if anyone was going to be on top of the game when it comes to reporting the death of a famous black person it would be Fox News.

I really don't want to use any of the cliche's I've heard over the past several days, but I will use one because I can't get around NOT using it ... "Michael Jackson's music was a part of the soundtrack of my life." I remember dancing to the Jackson 5 whenever they were on Soul Train or whenever my dad played their albums, which was just about every weekend! I can remember when I was in 8th grade & I went on a trip to Ohio with my grandmother. I really didn't want to go, but when I got there I met a girl named Nicole. We clicked from the start and she had become my girlfriend from that point throughout the remainder of my trip ... which ended the following day. A few days after getting home, there was this song on the radio ... "Farewell My Summer Love." Although Nicole and I had become pen-pals for the following couple of years, we never saw each other again. No matter what, if ever I hear that song, I pause and think of her ... ahhh ... young love. So cute.

Then came "Off the Wall," "Thriller," and "Bad" ... Michael was the truth! But there was always something else. Something everyone knew and mostly joked about. For all of his talent as a singer, songwriter, and dancer ... Michael Jackson was always a troubled person, and deep down, that was the Michael I connected with most for some reason.

I've been watching the news and listening to the radio and I'm just disgusted. The hypocrisy is just stifling to me. For as long as I can recall, I would say for every one person who genuinely loved Michael Jackson, there was 5 or more haters. Where's all the "Wacko Jacko" articles & commentaries now? Don't stop now ... hell "Don't stop til you get enough!" There was nothing that man could do that wasn't scrutinized by someone who couldn't do a fraction of all the things he accomplished - BEFORE PUBERTY! Even now, there are people on all the news and talk shows picking apart this man's life; the things he'd done, and the decisions he made. Where do you F'n people come from? Where do you F'n people get off? Yeah ... everyone is entitled to his or her opinion ... but as far as I'm concerned, unless you're grinding to do as much or more than those who are doing more than you, you should keep your opinions to yourself.

I'm glad Michael has gone on.

The day after Michael died there was a crazy thunder storm here in my part of New Jersey. I told people that it was Michael moonwalking through the Pearly Gates & kicking clouds out of the way (the lightning ... well there were angels taking pictures of Farrah Faucett {R.I.P.})!

I'm glad Michael has gone on.

For all of the vultures and locusts out there that he died owing money to ... get yours. Go on and pick the bones. I guarantee you that his body of work will out live whatever debt he left behind. just because he was out of sight over the years does not mean he wasn't in the studio during that time, and I guarantee you that as soon as you've gotten your last little penny of whatever he owed you, his estate will start releasing all kinds of albums (my bad - CD's)! If Tupac Shakur (2Pac) & Christopher Wallace (Notorious B.I.G.) can still put out albums all these years after their passings ... YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHING YET!

You think Elvis was "the King?" YOU HAVE NO IDEA what's about to go down within the next few years - no - the next few decades! Elvis' live accomplishments pale in comparison to Michael's, and now ... now ... NOW ... all I can say is BUCKLE UP!!

I'm glad Michael has gone on.

It was necessary for him to pass on. Now he can rest. Now he can play. Maybe heaven is just like it was in the Robin Williams movie, "What Dreams May Come" where you can be whoever you want to be - and maybe Michael can go back to being that beautiful brown-skinned child with the angelically soul-filled voice. Maybe in heaven, Michael can grow up a handsome brown-skinned man devoid of all of the issues of image that had been thrust upon him during his time amongst us.

We all know that Michael was preparing this huge comeback tour. I believe that he died preparing to give us his all. I believe that God saw just how hard Michael was working and knew how pure his love was for his fans. It's like looking at the speedometer on your car. Based on the numbers on the dashboard, it would appear that your car could travel up to maybe 140 mph, but when you put the petal to the metal, the fastest your car might go will be 110 mph. That's because your car may be equipped with a device called a "governor." It governs the limits of your car's speed.

I believe that God looked down on Michael and said,
"My son, I did not design the human body to have that much energy. You have pushed yourself too far, and I cannot stand to see you push yourself any further. Come home."

I believe that for all of the work that Michael was putting in; the level of production he was planning, the perfection he was infamously known for ... this planet was not worthy of such a performance. I believe God called Michael home so that HE and those He deemed worthy could see that performance in the greatest stadium never made with human hands.

Rest Michael ... Rest in Peace.
HSRjr.

Today's Thought ... 28 Jun 2009.

"Everything is everything & everything's going to be alright. While life is too short to be consumed by negativity, people must stop just acting like the pieces of peace will fall into place just because & at the very moment you want them to. Granted, there are times when you can change your mindset from negative to positive instantly, but there are also times when you must take time to process & purge those feelings."

HSRjr.

Honor Michael by Working "LIKE MIKE"

Do you REALLY want to honor
Michael Jackson's memory?
Don't spend every waking hour watching CNN or listening to all of his songs on the radio!

GET OFF YOUR BUTT and GET YOUR GRIND ON AS HARD AS HE DID.

His body of work spans over forty years!
What mark will YOU leave behind?

I just struck a deal to sell my book "FIND A WAY!" at the K&G Men's Store (Wdbg, NJ.) RIGHT NEXT TO Steve Harvey's book!

WHO's BAD?!!?

Today's Thought ... 17 Jun. 2009.

Everything unfolds as it will - all in due time.

I have the power to predict the future with a significant degree of accuracy.

It has taken me a few short years to master this power,

but I now own it & I am using it daily.

Using this power does not make ME better than anyone else;

however, it does make MY RESULTS better than those

who know not how to use this power.

By what name is that power known?



GOAL SETTING!!

HRJR on the Claudia Jordan Show ... AGAIN!

You know how I do!
I think I have been designated:

"The Deep Brotha!"

http://www.zshare.net/audio/61429990477315bc/
(I'm on 36 mins./45 secs. into the show)

HRJR on the Claudia Jordan Show Again!

Once again I made a call-in appearance on the The Claudia Jordan Show this past Monday (June 8 2009). In case you missed it, check for it here: http://www.zshare.net/audio/61128143d83d6f92/
(I'm on 9 mins./50 secs. into the show)

It's only a matter of time before I'm actually out in L.A. in the Sirius/XM Foxxhole Radio studios promoting
FIND A WAY TO MAKE A WAY!

Stay tuned & enjoy!

SOUL-MATES ... Do They Exist?

For a person to be your soul-mate, he or she has to be your END-all/BE-all. The problem we have here is that we imprison ourselves with “absolutes.” We want the END results without BEGINNING to put in the work necessary to get there.

So what about when you meet THAT person; and you fall in love with THAT person, and you marry THAT person ... and within a few short years, THAT person gets on your last nerve by just waking up?

What happens when you go to the gym or Home Depot – wherever – and then you meet ANOTHER person who reminds you of NONE of the drama you have at home?

This is nothing more than the grass appearing greener on the other side. This is nothing more than having 80% of what you need at home but chasing after that 20% tail thinking it will make you complete – but if & when you get that 20%, you run the risk of losing that 80%.

No ... you don’t “meet” a soul-mate ... you BECOME a soul-mate after you and your man or woman have put in & dedicated years – no – decades ... of time, love, and sacrifice with one another.

Look at our grandparents ... those who have put in over 50 – 60 years with one another. Those are the definitions and examples of what soul-mates are and should be. Couples of today don’t have anything on what our grandparents had to go through, yet the divorce rate gets higher & higher every year.

Your soul-mate is that person who either lays your body to its final resting place, or waits for you to join them on the other side.

Anything less ... just ain’t it.

Is 40 the New 18?

In a discussion group that I particupate in, someone asked the question, "is 40 the New 18?"

George Bernard Shaw once said "it's a shame that youth is wasted on the young." In our late teens & early 20's we are full of energy, ambition and a virtually insatiable desire to attain "the good life;" however, at that age we have little in terms of the resources necessary to fulfill that desire.

As we age (and hopefully grow in the process), we begin to not only gain wisdom, but we also build up the finances and resources necessary to get those things we wanted when we were younger. Unfortunately, by the time we can actually afford some of those things, we're considered too old to have them.

I spent my 20's trashing my credit because I had little to no appreciation for its importance (my dad tried to warn me, but he felt it best that I learn on my own). I am spending my 30's climbing out of the hole I spent digging in my 30's. This year I turn 39. One more year before I kick down 40's door, and when I do I will be set. Some things are almost paid off, and most of the other things are burning off with time. My most major debt now consists of my mortage and my car note.

The problem we have as a people, is that we think only of what we have and what we missed out on having. This does not help those who come up behind us though, and they - our kids - are left to figure it out on their own just as we had to do. This is the cycle that must be broken. We need to instill in our children the appreciation of the value of planning and WORKING towards the future. The sooner they appreciate planning for the future; and the sooner they begin working towards the future, the sooner they can begin enjoying the fruits of their labor.

The best thing we can do is find a way to encourage our youth to excel academically and guide them into being able to determine early what they want to achieve in life so that they can start working towards & achieving it earlier. This not only includes matters of careers & money, but also maintaining their health, relationships & proper family planning as well.

I don't want for my sons to be approaching their 40's and THEN learn what it is they want to do with their lives. Therefore, it is my plan; as they enter their teens, to expose them to what they could have and encourage them to begin saving, planning & working towards those things.

40 is NOT the new 18 ... We're just able to afford the things we wanted at 18. It might be a little late for me, but my success will be in seeing my sons be able to get in their early/mid 20's what it took me my mid to late 30's to get.

Another HRJR Testimonial!!

If you're like me and believe in karma, you believe that what you put out into the world you will get back in some fashion. I have a series of video blogs on Facebook & YouTube called "HRJR's Definitions of Success." In these videos, like I do here, I express those areas of existence that I believe are necessary to better insure success in our everyday lives.

Today I received an e-mail from someone who has made a major life goal and taken definitive action towards achieving it, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that she has credited me and specifically one of those videos for having made that goal and taken action to improve her life. All I'm doing is putting out a positive message encouraging you all to take responsibility for your lives and go out there in get what you want in this world. When people actually take in my encouragement and actually improve their lives, their success is my success!

With her permission, I am honored to share that e-mail with you below:

Dear H.,

I just wanted to let you know how you inspired me. The video "HRJR's Definitions of Success #7" did it for me. I was like "man this brother is reading my files!" See, I have been residing in the land of "I am gonna Try" and "I am trying" I became a registered nurse 6 years after more than a decade of "trying" until one day I did. However after nursing school and much "trying" I never just did what I promised myself I'd do which is to pursue a Masters' degree in Clincial Psychology. I was "trying to" pay the bills, "trying to be a better mother," etc... and I let my dream go. As you stated, none of the things I "tried to do" came to pass and I kept feeling bitter and felt more like a failure each day.

Recently I started paying attention to your posts and after the video, understood ... There was no commitment in my "TRYING," so I got up and did it. I enrolled in a local college as a mitriculated student and will graduate in 2 years. Though the road ahead is long, I will just do it(like Nike says) And I thank you...will keep u posted on my progress, if u need more info let me know.

Peace and Blessings,
Simone C. Phillips-RN.
Allentown, PA

If you would like to see the video she is speaking of, as well as the other videos in the series, click here:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=&search_query=+HRJRs+Definitions+of+Success&aq=f

I am truly humbled.